Tuesday, August 12, 2008

A team that was slacking in the beginning of the summer, Team Noel has defiantly left their mark on the Greater NC Pro-Am Summer League. In the championship game versus the usually dominant RDU Barnstormers, Team Noel controlled the entire game, at times leading by more than 20 points. The Barnstormers struggled without Nolan Smith and JJ Hickson, and when Andre Mcollum failed to have a good night, Team Noel took it away, almost making the game a blowout. Shammond Williams,however, stepped in as the lead scorer with 16 total points. Although behind Team Noel for the entire game, the Barnstormers were still able to put 92 points on the board. Team Noel played an amazing game of basketball. Derrick "Caveman" Wiley, the Tournament MVP, along with David Noel, Ricky Clemons, and Mike Bell showed force as they made the game a phenomenal one to watch: exhibiting flawless inside and outside game. The entire game was incredibly fast and it seemed like the Barnstormers could not keep up. In the end, The Tournament Champions, Team Noel won with a score of 113 to 92. Each member of Team Noel was presented with a trophy after the final buzzer and Bo Ingram of the Regulators was named the League's Most Valuable Player! As the summer dwindles to an end, the S.J.G Greater NC Pro-Am Basketball League would like to thank every person that came out to support the league and all of the amazing talent who put on an incredible show each and every night! Look out for us next summer; same time, same place! God Bless.

Monday, August 11, 2008

In the second semifinal game of the night, Team Noel went up against Team Felton in a fast-paced and high-energy contest. CJ Wilkerson and Jawad Williams were standout players for Team Felton. With Wilkerson's quick speed and agility and Jawad's power in the hole, Team Felton stayed close by Team Noel throughout the entire game. David Noel of Team Noel controlled the other side with 21 total points as the lead scorer of his team. The game was tied, 89 all, with 32 seconds left. Ricky Clemons of Team Noel made a jump shot with 20 seconds left, bringing the score to 91-89. After a couple of bad turnovers, Team Felton's last opportunity to win the game came with Jared Grady's attempt at a three-pointer with 5 seconds left in regulation. He missed and Team Felton could not get an offensive rebound to try again. Both teams played an amazing game, but Team Noel won with a score of 91 to 89. They will face the RDU Barnstormers in the championship game on Monday.

In an extremely exciting game of the Semifinals, the RDU Barnstormers went head-to-head with Team Williams. Andre Mcollum of the RDU Barnstormers was on fire with his continuous three-pointers. At one point in the first half, Mcollum and Jerry Stackhouse of Team Williams went back and forth, each showing tremendous talent in their own three-point contest. With Andre Mcollum and JJ Hickson of the Barnstormers powering on both offense and defense, it appeared that Team Williams had no chance to win. However Team Williams' Julian Gamble and Stackhouse were able to put the points on the board that kept them in the game. In the final seconds, with Team Williams only down by three, Hayward Fain had an opportunity to shoot a three and tie the game, but he missed and the rebound went to Stackhouse, who was in perfect position downtown. The crowd stood on their feet to see if he could make the all-important shot...but the ball bounced off the rim. In an amazing game, The RDU Barnstormers win it 85 to 82. They will face Team Noel in the Championship game on Monday.

Greater NC Pro-AM is committed to enriching and strengthening the communities in which it serves. Through a unbelievable partnership with North Carolina Central University, we have been able to provide a quality, first-class event that is a major benefactor for the community. Listed above with the NC Pro Am-Staff is Chancellor Nelms and Athletic Director Wicker-McCree.

Saturday, August 9, 2008

The final game of the Quaterfinals was truly a shocker. The number one team, the Regulators, faced the number eight team, Team Felton and quickly found out that the last seed had some great talent. PJ Tucker and Jawad Williams of Team Felton brought their "A" game when they came back from a strong Regulator lead to make the game a nail-biter in the end. Jerry Stackhouse and Bo Ingram of the Regulators also played well both offensively and defensively. Early in the second half, the Regulators were beating Team Felton down the court on every play and it seemed like the game would be another Regulator win. However, after a fantastic dunk by Jawad Williams and a three-point play be PJ Tucker, Team Felton closed the gap to 50-53 (Regulators) and this sparked the plug. With both teams on the edge and all tied up at 1:45 left on the clock, every person in the gym was on their feet. Jared Grady of Team Felton was fouled with 7.6 seconds left and made both freethrows, bringing the team up by 3. With the Regulator's last chance at winning, Darius Johnson-Odom of Team Felton intentionally fouled Bo Ingram on the dribble to keep the Regulators from shooting a three and tying the game. Bo Ingram went to the line, but only made one of two shots. On a rebound, Bo Ingram got the ball back behind the three-point line and was wide open. He had enough time to shoot a three and win the game, but unfortunately, he missed, and Team Felton secured a 65-63 victory. The underdogs in the last seed beat the leaders of the league! Team Felton will go on to the Semifinals to face Team Noel on Sunday.

Even though E-Net only had 6 players for the evening Quarterfinal match-up, they were able to keep up with Team Williams throughout the entire game. Brandon Costner of E-Net was phenomenal with countless massive dunks, flawless jump shots, and strong rejections. He had 25 total points, showing all emotion as he powered over players and yelled on both sides of the court. Team Williams, however, was able to open up the difference in the final two minutes and increased the score to 61-51 with 37 seconds left. Brandon Costner's two three pointers in the last 20 seconds and Kevin "KJ" Holmes' final three at the buzzer were not enough to secure an E-Net win. Team Williams won the game 67 to 62 and will move on to the Semifinals to face the RDU Barnstormers on Sunday.

In the second game of the afternoon, the RDU Barnstormers continued to play well, even without Olek "OC" Czyz and Kyle Singler. Nolan Smith and Dominique Sutton stepped up and led their team through a ball game full of incredible basketball. Black Magic once again displayed expert communication and were able to stick with the Barnstormers until the final three minutes. With back-to-back show-stopping dunks from Sutton and Charles Ward of Black Magic, the crowd was definitely on their feet and yelling for their favorite teams. In the end, the team who previously only beat Black Magic by one point won again with the final score 65 to 59. The RDU Barnstormers will continue to the Semifinals where they will play Team Williams.

In the opener for the Quarterfinals, Team Noel and Team K.G. both played very well. James Zimmerman of Team K.G. and Ricky Clemons of Team Noel were standout players who were amazing from downtown. Zimmerman had 19 points alone in the first half and when he had the ball in his hands, it was a sure bet he would make the shot. In the first half, Team K.G. seemed to control the game, and were up by ten by halftime. However, in the final minutes of the game, Team Noel took it away. They were quicker, had more energy, played tighter defense, and made more baskets. When Team Noel was up by 15 points with just a minute left in regulation, Team K.G. could do nothing to come back. The final score of the game was 79 to 65. Team Noel will go on to the Semifinals, where they will face Team Felton.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Team Noel led in the final game of the night for a majority of the minutes, however Team K.G. came back late in the second half. Without Greg Copeny, Gerald Henderson and James Zimmerman of Team K.G. were the leaders. Henderson was great in his inside game, while Zimmerman held his own with the outside game, sinking very important three pointers in the final minutes. However all of these three's were not enough to withstand Team Noel's high energy and amazing talent. Mike Bell was the lead scorer of Team Noel with 20 points and he performed well as a "big man" inside. Ced Williams and Ricky Clemons kept their team alive with three pointers from all over the court. In the end, Team Noel won the game 73 to 65 and tied Team K.G.'s 5-5 record as the fourth seed going into the tournament. The crowd will see these two teams go head-to-head again in the quarterfinals on Saturday August 9th.

In my opinion, this was the most exciting game of the night. It remained a close, fast-paced game throughout all 40 minutes of play. Jawad Williams of Team Felton scored his team's first 12 points and had 28 overall. When Jackie Manuel came in the game, he played great defense against Elliot Williams, who was slowed down for the first time all season. The greatest part of the game was when Jawad Williams massively dunked over two defenders, including Marcus Melvin of E-Net. This woke the crowd up, who was on their feet for the rest of the game. Josh Powell, lead scorer for E-Net with 22 points, and Elliot Williams, kept their team side-by-side with Team Felton until the final seconds. Marcus Melvin of E-Net knocked down two free throws to put his team ahead by two for good. Costly turnovers at the end of the game for Team Felton contributed to their defeat. For the final regular season game for these two teams, E-Net wins it 70 to 68. A team who was at once in last place, E-Net moves up the bracket to the sixth seed who will be playing Team Williams in the quaterfinals on Saturday. Team Felton is in last place and will go against the Regulators in the first round.

For the second time in the night, one team had to endure having only five players present. The Regulators, led by Bo Ingram and Chris Leitner, held their own against the RDU Barnstormers who had a full bench. Bo Ingram was outstanding in every area of the court. He was the lead scorer with 27 points. Chris Leitner contributed tremendously with 19 points of his own and big man, CJ Leslie, helped significantly inside. However, all of this effort was not enough to keep the Barnstormers away. Nolan Smith, Olek Czyz, Andre Mcallom, and new man Dominque Sutton were a force to reckon with. They were able to blow the game away in the second half, leading to a 90-60 victory. This was the second straight loss for the Regulators, but they still remain the number one seed going into the tournament, while the RDU Barnstormers are the #2 seed.

The first game of the night got off to a great start! Team Williams was phenomenal in the passing game. Players like Vassil Evtimov, Ilian Evtimov, and Hayward Fain would do a fake, no-look assist to another player who would then score the basket. Team Williams exhibited expert communication and drive. Even without star player Norbert Randall, Black Magic continued to play strong, sinking a majority of their three-pointers and jump shots. However, in the end, only having five players with barely any breaks slowed down Black Magic in the final minutes and Team Williams won the game 71 to 63. With the regular season over, Team Williams is the third seed going into the tournament on Saturday, while Black Magic is the seventh seed.